Deadly Challange
by Pharaohs Queen
Summary: Basically, this is version 2 of "Death of the Silent One". I made it better, longer, and more... depressing. Rated T for lots of blood, heartlessness, death, and unrelenting cruelty. Deathfic. Not a happy ending.


Deadly Challange

By: Pharaohs Queen

Outside, it was dark.

The UnderNet was even darker still, save for the few flashes of explosions that came from one corner.

A swarm of viruses floated around one spot. Several at a time would rush in towards the center, there would be a brief flash of red light, and the viruses would become nothing but cyber dust.

A Navi with red coloring, white hair, and a helmet shading his eyes was standing in the middle of the virus swarm. Instead of a right hand, a red glowing cyber sword was humming softly; one swing, and several viruses were deleted at once. But by the nonchalant way he swung his sword, one could almost say that he was bored.

"Viruses are much stronger this far into the UnderNet," he said out loud, his arm twitching as three more viruses exploded. "And that's just the way I like it."

'But we've been in this area for over a week.' A deep voice in his head noted.

He paused. The viruses took advantage of his motionlessness to swarm in. Three bright red strikes, and the area around him was clear again. "True… it _is_ getting rather boring in this area…"

'Chaud, isn't there somewhere else we could possibly be challenged?'

He leapt out of the virus group, landing far away.

"There probably is, Protoman, but as to being challenged… I can only think of two people, and one of them is no longer battling. As to the other…" The end of his sentence trailed off as Chaud remembered the last time they had seen _him._

'You mean Bass.'

"Yes. Although…" he hesitated again.

'What?'

"I was just thinking about the time we first ran into him. Lan and Megaman challenged him without a second thought. Look at how much they improved over the course of a year, with him as an opponent. I wonder…"

They stopped running as a feeling of dread washed over the shared cyber body. They looked up to see a figure standing above them in the air, the edges of his cape flapping and snapping, and his red eyes glaring down at them.

"What do you want with me?" He whispered, as if in response to Chaud and Protoman's earlier wishes.

Chaud and Protoman smirked. "We were looking for a challenge." A white sphere of light enveloped them, and when it had faded away, their form had changed slightly, and a long, gleaming sword rested in their hands. "Muramasa style!" They yelled, then activated Protoman's Mach speeds, ending up, ready to strike, behind Bass.

"Provide us with one."

Bass chuckled lowly as the sword glanced harmlessly off his Aura shield. "I may be a challenge for _you_… but you're nowhere near my level."

Chaud grimaced and swung again; Bass stepped to the side and avoided it easily. "And you're nowhere near _his _level."

Chaud's eye twitched; he charged once again, his blows faster and more furious than before. Bass stood there, smirking as his Aura shield was weakened with every blow. _You fool._ He thought._ You don't even realize… blinded with your anger… you can't see what's going to happen… You don't see it… but I foresee it… your death… by my hands_

There was an earth shattering crash as the shield shattered and Chaud yelled triumphantly.

"I am above his level, Bass! And I am above yours!" They thrust with Muramasa, and felt a touch of satisfaction at the squelching sound it made. Bass gasped, then coughed, spraying the front of his cloak with blood.

"You're done, Bass." Chaud said, pulling on Muramasa to stab Bass again. The blade didn't move. He looked at it, startled.

Bass had grabbed straight onto the blade with his left hand, stopping Chaud from drawing it out of his body. His right hand was held out to the side, purple lines and sparks danced from his fingertips.

Chaud eyes widened. _No…_

Bass whispered three words before putting his hand with the sparks on the blade. "Get-Ability Program."

There was a flash of white light, laced with a dark purple. Chaud leapt back, arms covering his eyes. The light disappeared, and he heard a clatter as Muramasa fell to the ground at his feet.

"You were never at my level, gnat."

Chaud looked up, his eyes seeing this sight, but his mind not wanting to believe.

Bass' cloak had been changed into a cape, and fragments of cloth were belted around his forearms and shins. At his left side dangled a sheath, the hilt that was sticking out was black, with red stains that looked like blood.

Chaud gasped. "Bass… he's become…"

'Muramasa style…' Protoman finished. 'Chaud, it's time for us to leave. He will not hesitate to kill us.'

Chaud shook his head, his eyes always staying connected to Bass's glare, daring him to run. "I've accepted his challenge. I can't… won't back down now." His hands balled into fists as the picture of Lan and Megaman charging reared up in the front of his mind.

"I refuse to be weak any longer!"

Chaud picked up Muramasa again, as Bass drew his own. He could feel his breath catch in his throat as the black blade came out of the sheath.

_It's black… just like his soul…_ Chaud thought.

They stood staring at each other for a moment, swords raised. A stiff cyber breeze ruffled their capes; it suddenly stopped, and they each leapt at the other, screaming as they flew.

_Clang!_ The swords clashed for only a moment before the backed off and charged again. Sweat began to bead down Chaud's face, but he was grinning as he dodged, parried, and slashed. Bass was bearing his teeth.

_I can do this…_ Chaud thought, his arms starting to ache. _I must do this…_

With a final triumphant cry, Chaud slashed at his opponent one last time. He fell forwards into the space the Bass had occupied. His eyes widened as he felt the evil presence behind him, a moment before he heard the slight swish of the black Muramasa and the bite of the sword as it entered into his middle.

Chaud winced, and coughed, drops of blood spilling onto the floor in front of him.

Bass twisted the blade, a sadistic smile spreading over his face as Chaud gasped, and yelled as he pulled out the blade.

Chaud collapsed on his side, his own Muramasa falling from his limp fingers, blood pouring out of his wound and from his mouth. "Ngh…"

_This… is not… good._

Bass stood over him and watched as Chaud's outline became fuzzy, and he split into two separate beings, both badly torn up, and bleeding.

Chaud heard a dark chuckle though the red haze that suddenly dropped over his mind. "Foolish humans… you are all so eager to rush to your deaths."

Protoman pressed his hands over his middle, trying to stop the area from derizzing. He bit his lip to keep from gasping as it slowly moved its way along his body, deleting him bit by bit.

_It… hurts…_

"Protoman…" the human gasped.

"Chaud…" the Navi replied. "I'm sorry… Chaud, sir… I've… failed you…"

"No… no you haven't! It was… my fault! You were right! We should've… left! Please don't blame… yourself Protoman! Protoman… my friend!"

They reached out their hands, wanting to grab hold one last time, wanting to die together, as friends, as they always said they would.

Bass snarled. "You make me sick!" He lunged forward with his sword, landing squarely in Protoman's chest. He screamed.

"Protoman!!" Chaud yelled, coughing up more blood. His Navi turned and looked at him.

"Good-bye… Chaud…"

"No!! PROTOMAN!!"

Bass laughed, and backed away as Protoman broke up into little blue cubes. A voice unemotionally declared: "Protoman: Deleted." The last time Chaud had heard that voice was when Megaman had been deleted during the fight with the Life Virus. He had hoped to never hear it again.

Bass pulled his sword out of the ground and turned to smirk at Chaud, who glared up defiantly at him.

"How… dare you… kill… him… you… bas—AHH!!" The insult was cut off as pain erupted in his shoulder. He grabbed with one of his blood soaked hands, reeling from Bass' kick.

Bass cocked an eyebrow. "Interesting…" he put the flat of his black blade under Chaud's chin, forcing his head up. "You remind me of him… that other human boy. You too, are willing to die with your Navi… Why?"

Chaud coughed. "Protoman wasn't just… my Navi… he was… my best friend…"

Bass snorted. "Friendship. Drivel of the weak."

"YOU SHUT UP!!" Chaud snarled, his body shaking with the effort.

Bass put the point of his Muramasa on Chaud's cheek. "How often have you heard," his voice a deadly whisper. "That the UnderNet is no place for weaklings?" As he spoke, he slowly carved a thin line down the human's face. "That the UnderNet is no place for children? That the UnderNet is no place for humans at all?!" He pushed the point down harder, eliciting a gasp from Chaud. Drops oozed slowly out of his cheek to join the ever widening puddle beneath him.

"You will… pay for… this… Bass…" Chaud wheezed out. _It's getting… harder to… breathe…_

Bass looked down at the young human, no emotion showing on his face, but bloodlust sparked in his eyes. "Really now… you're just wasting you last few breaths. It's useless to threaten me."

Chaud felt his fingers curl weakly into a fist. _It's getting… very dark…_ "I told you… shut up!"

Bass' fingers tightened around the hilt of his black sword.

"You should have never challenged me." Bass whispered. "But now… it's too late." Chaud's eyes widened, then closed.

_Protoman… will I go to where you are?_

"Die gnat!" He brought the sword down with deadly accuracy. There was a slight _thunk_ as the sword pierced through flesh, heart, and ground, and Chaud disappeared from the cyber realm.

Bass was left standing alone. He pulled the black Muramasa out of the ground, sheathed it, and stood staring at the bloodstains on the ground and on his hands. His hands curled into fists; the blood that had sprayed from the human was warm and sticky.

_What a powerful new ability I've acquired…_

He threw back his head and laughed.

- - -

Back in Blaze manor, Chaud was sitting at a desk, where he and Protoman had connected to the 'Net that night, wanting to train more.

On the desk lay the red PET; on the screen, the word 'Deleted' was flashing gently. Chaud lay on the desk, his head turned towards the PET, one hand resting gently on the edge. His eyes were empty and staring, a trickle of blood dripped from the corner of his mouth, his black shirt hiding the blood blossoming on his chest.

All around them echoed the sound of Bass's maniacal laughter, rebounding off the walls, mocking the body and the empty PET.

--

Do not get on Bass' bad side.  
or mine. We will hunt you down. MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!  
did I scare anybody? Come on now… tell me the truth… I want to know!  
I hope I humanized Chaud a little bit more… I was working on that.  
and making Bass more heartless. Of course.  
Why would I kill characters as awesome as Chaud and Protoman?  
shrugs cuz nobody expects me, who has an amazing ChaudxOC paring, to kill off one of my favorite characters.  
I WILL finish Requiem's Awakening by Christmas. … the next chapter, at least… ;  
**PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!!**

btw, please go vote on my happy poll on my profile. That would be nice. Thanks.


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